Got invited to the grand opening of Roastwoods at Kuningan Village and also the exclusive chance to try out some of their menus as well! If you guys don't know where Kuningan Village is, it's in the Kuningan area (are you kidding me), and it's actually really near from Setiabudi One and not too far from Four Seasons Hotel, more like in between. Chris, the owner of Roastwoods is another descendant of his family business, Kuningan Village area is owned by Chris' family and it is the home of Roastwoods and Roastwoods' two older "siblings": Dapoer Nyonya and 3house.

Even though this one is an invited session, but let's make the judgement fair! *smirk*

Chicken Popcorn

IDR 38k

A decent starter, I enjoy having this menu and couldn't stop myself from picking each to each. It's fried beautifully crispy outside but still remains chewy on the inside.

Popiah
IDR 45k
The "stand out" among the appetizers presented to me on the afternoon. For me, this is unique. The idea of eating this is basically having those "cups", which were edible, then add the filling which is sauteed vegetable in Roastwoods' special black sauce. If you want, you can add some topping (eggs, chilli, celery) and spicy sauce. It was such a burst of flavor in the mouth <3.

Chip and Dip (Nachos)

IDR 45k

This one is sightly more common because you can found it in other restaurants as well, but so far this one is good, the chips (nachos) were home made and were pretty crispy! Me fond of the tomato sides, it's fresh, sour and lightly seasoned. Other than that , despite my personal hatred meltdown on cheese in general, this was good.

Smores
IDR 45k
Another different and fun Roastwoods' creation, this one is called Smores. The idea of eating this is basically to burn the marshmallows until they melt and slightly burnt on the outside, after that, you need to fasten up in putting the chocolates and the strawberries together inside the biscuits which acts like "burger buns". This was unique but I personally think it's a cute presentation and way of eating, maybe it's just not my thing.

Iced Lychee Tea
IDR 28k
Since I need a refreshing drink for the day, this one is my option. It was indeed refreshing.

Beef Bibimbap
IDR 59k
Roastwoods' take on Beef Bibimbap, surprisingly this was decent!!! The sauce was pretty generous and tasty (must be! It's the bomb!), maybe I would love mine with raw runny eggs on top instead of a sunny side up, but it's their creativity I need to give credits for. This freakin Bibimbap is damn working for meh!

Fried Duck with Green Chili
IDR 62k
This might be my favorite main course here, I have never seen such a big and thick duck that looks almost chicken like and by the way, it's a good value for money! The meat was tender and such a lovely crisp on the skin! The green chili was the bomb! It was spicy, tasty and definitely addicting. Even without the thin sliced soya beancurd and soya bean cake on the side, this is such a lovely dish for me.

Stuffed Chicken

IDR 65k

The stuffed chicken was another menu to watch for from Roastwoods. the filling was majority Cassava leaves with other ingredients. The chicken coating was a bit hard, I wish it was softer on the outsider and juicier on the inside.

Chocolate Lava Cake
IDR 49k
I onced gave a little teaser on my Instagram about this following dish. So far, this Chocolate Lava cake from Roastwoods' is on the top 10, even probably top 5 tastiest chocolate lava cakes I have ever had so far! It has an amazing texture, rich chocolate dough on the inside that won't bloat the hell out of you, and one scoop of vanilla ice cream! Sounds simple, but simplicity is sometimes the loveliest. I hope I wasn't just lucky and they consistently presenting this to the other costumers <3.

I couldn't believe I actually ate this much food! I feel like everything goes inside my tummy so smoothly, my mouth is definitely working out VERRRRYY HARD!

Overall, I think Roastwoods is a really decent cafe that serves decent (mostly) western food with a little touch of asian menu, it might not be very spacial as in the space, but during the day, the ambiance is pretty decent. It's that cafe that you would love to go with your friends while watching football match with the company of decent menu. You should really go here and try out their Chocolate Lava cake! DIE!

Did I mention that not a single food here contains MSG on the process? :).

In recent years, we have seen such a growing phenomenon in the local culinary scene, especially with the growth of new dining places. Most of them serve coffee in their menu list and along with all those growing numbers, I have summarize them to my list of the best coffee shops in Jakarta. I hope this can be a great guide for coffee lovers who are in Jakarta or planning to visit Jakarta! PS: Jakarta has great places to have coffee!

This is NOT a countdown list, this list is organized by alphabetical order.

Considered one of the best coffee shops in Jakarta, Anomali Coffee certainly needs no more introduction. This coffee joint's using local beans for their coffees! Since Indonesia's one of the largest coffee producers in the world, that means you don't need to worry about the quality. The coffees served here talk for themselves and for the loyal costumers as well as myself. If you love your coffee with a little touch of fusion, then try their famous Creme Brulee Caramel Coffee (IDR 44k), top recommendation.

Bakoel Coffee
Jalan Senopati Raya No. 92A
Jakarta Selatan
021 - 7591 2249
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bakoel Coffee is one of the oldest coffee joint in Jakarta, the heritage started on 1878 by Liauw Tek Siong. Located in the Senopati area, Bakoel Coffee doesn't have that spacial area but as you step yourself in the coffee shop, you'll be excited by the coffee aroma surrounding the narrow venue. My favorite menu here is their "Caramel Latte" (IDR 42k)

Blacklisted Coffee
Lotte Shopping Avenue, 1st fl.
Jl. Prof. Dr. Satrio Kav 3-5
021 - 2988 9166
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blacklisted is one of my most favorite coffee shops at the moment, despite its comfy interior and their tasty coffees, I also love the fact of how simple their coffee is, but with a great production, the coffee turns out to be really good. Their "Cappuccino" (IDR 30k) and "Caramel Latte" (IDR 35k) are my recommendations here.

As one of the largest franchise in Indonesia as well as in the world, Coffee Bean is not only serving good coffees, also lifestyle and social. My favorite here is their "Cappuccino", tasted a little bold with awesome balance between the milk and shots of espresso.

The existence of this following coffee shop has caught attention from both coffee lovers and the youths. Coffeebar at Pantai Indah Kapuk serves you great coffee using the Toraja beans, therefore their coffees are slightly more acid then the ones using arabica or local beans. I am really fond of their "Caramel Macchiato" (IDR 32k) for that oh-generous caramel sauce and syrup.

Crematology is currently one of the hippest coffee shop. Located at the busy Senopati area, this coffee shop won my heart for its comfortable interior filled with earthy elements, the scent of coffee lingering all around the venue and decent coffees to wake your spirit.

Another favorite coffee shop to visit at the moment: Djournal Coffee! It has won my heart for its awesome coffee creations and amazing venue perfect for your personal moment, private business meeting or spending time with your loved ones. Djournal's coffees are using Toraja beans, (same like Coffeebar) and that's why the flavor tend to get more acid than the others on this list, but so far, that's a good thing and slightly more unique. Try their "Salted Caramel Coffee" (IDR 39k) and "Caramel Macchiato" (IDR 33k) for they're really good!

Illy is undoubtedly one of the best coffee pioneers in the world and when they're making their own coffee shop for their loyal fans, there's no further suspicion on their coffee creations. Espressamente Illy at Plaza Senayan is currently another regular visit for me, their Cappuccino is just balanced, in a way...light, but overall, well made!

One of the largest coffee joint in Indonesia and also in Jakarta is Excelso Coffee or more well known as D'Excelso Cafe, until now, around 105 outlets are spread around 19 cities in Indonesia. FYI, if you didn't know about this, Excelso is actually a local brand (yes it is originally from our beloved country Indonesia), and it's under the same group as Kapal Api Group!

Even though I haven't personally try this one, but a lot of fellow food bloggers claiming that this is one of the hippest greatest places to have coffees, well surely I believe my fellow food bloggers and that's why it deserves to be on the eatandtreats list!

Ikuze Japanese Food Bazaar

Avenue of The Stars, Lippo Mall Kemang

UG fl. Unit 01 OD

Jl. Pangeran Antasari No. 36P

Kemang, Jakarta Selatan

021 - 2952 8356

Javva Coffee
Jl. Senopati No. 71-73 (Inside Kedaung Showroom, beside Woodstone Eatery)
Jakarta Selatan
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Getting here was a little bit tricky, they're more familiar with "Kedaung Interior" because this coffee shop's hidden somewhere inside this Interior shoroom. Talking about the space, this might be the smallest coffee shop in Jakarta. It's more like an area where people who initially want to shop for interior items can sit down and relax and sip one two cups of coffees. Try their Encek Coffee, it's their take on Java Milk Coffee.JJ Royal Brasserie
Lotte Shopping Avenue, LG fl.
Jl. Prof. Dr. Satrio Kav. 11
Jakarta, Indonesia 12940
021 - 2988 8980
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When you hear that JJ Royal is the company that handles the coffees in certain restaurants, then you can sweep all your worry away. They're famous for their premium coffees along with the fragrant beans and lovely coffee creations made from it. JJ Royal Brasserie is undoubtedly one of the hippest dining places at the moment and they also serve great coffees as well! You can customize your coffee with special latte art (you can even have one with your face drawn with the latte art).

Kopi Luwak is famous for their uber fragrant beans and creations and also for their...expensive price tag! But I can tell you the coffee is perfect for those who love more intense flavor of coffee with a hint of bitterness. I once tried both: without the sugar and one with brown sugar mixed in, and turns out I liked the plain one better. One cup of Kopi Luwak can cost you around IDR 90k. I had tried their "Iced Blended Avocado Coffee" and turned out it's pretty decent (sorry no picture, I didn't bring my camera back then).

Koultoura Coffee
Jl. Taman Ratu Raya Blok AA2/33
Taman Ratu, Jakarta Barat
021 - 2952 0310
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Koultoura Coffee Jakarta is currently one of my most regular visits, most of the times, what makes me miss this place so much is the homey comfortable interior and the decent coffees. They also serve brunch, lunch and dinner menu for those who wanted extra shot of carbs or proteins to their system.

Liberica Coffee
Pacific Place Jakarta, 4th fl.
Jl. Jendral Sudirman Kav. 52-53
Sudirman, Jakarta Selatan
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Personally for me, Liberica Coffee is one of the best coffee shop in Jakarta. They have bold taste of coffees from the rare Liberica beans (and that's the philosophy of the naming), even though it's a fact that one cup of Cappuccino here could cost more than ones you can find in other coffee shops, but it promises you a great quality from that cup of coffee. If you want "a sweet company" while sipping your favorite coffee here, don't forget to grab that beautiful "Liberica Cake", it tastes so damn good.

Lucaffe
Pacific Place, 1st fl.
Jl. Jendral Sudirman Kav. 52-53
Sudirman, Jakarta Selatan
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here is another great coffee shop located in Pacific Place (also one of my most favorite at the moment), it's Lucaffe! Located at the first floor of Pacific Place mall, this tiny coffee shop with a little touch of Paris on the interior is ready to serve you with the fine coffees.

One Fifteenth Coffee
Jalan Gandaria I/63
Jakarta Selatan
021 - 722 5678
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Awarded one of the best coffee shops in Jakarta by many, One Fifteenth (1/15) Coffee is worth your visit! They are not only serving "serious" coffees for the peeps, but also the ambiance, it's clearly shown from the awesome interior of this coffee shop, I personally think it's my ideal coffee shop interior, really simple and minimalist, but not leaving the classy feeling behind!

Pandava Coffee
Epicentrum Walk at Epicentrum Mall
Jl. Rasuna Epicentrum, GF W119
Epicentrum Kuningan, Jakarta Selatan
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have been using the term "one of the best coffee" like a lot in this post, but the thing is, each coffee shop is unique and some of them just deserve the label, and FYI, it's "one of the best" though, not like I label something "the best of the best". This following coffee shop is also another candidate of one of the best coffee shop in Jakarta. Located at Epicentrum Walk Kuningan, this coffee shop is serving you great coffees as result from the great roasting, grinding and blending! I recommend their "Piccolo Latte" or their shakes creations.

Shangri-La Hotel - The Lounge
Shangri-La Hotel Jakarta, Lobby Level
Kota BNI Jl. Jendral Sudirman Kav. 1
Jakarta Pusat, 10220
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This venue mentioned here might be slightly different from the others as it's located in a hotel, but along with the decent coffees served here, it's also a perfect venue for personal or business meeting.

Starbucks
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I don't think this coffee shop needs anymore introduction, it's Starbucks everyone, I bet 80% of the whole population is the world knows about this coffee shop because it's literally everywhere! From all the coffee shops on this list, Starbucks is probably my numero uno most visit, not only for the coffees, but their outlets are just perfect for meeting, perfect for doing my personal projects and also my personal me time, also I come back for their awesome "Caramel Macchiato". For some, Starbucks' not only a place they go to have coffees, but it's more like a lifestyle to them.

Tanamera Coffee Roastery
Thamrin City Office Park AA 07
Jakarta Pusat

Currently one of my favorite coffee shop! Despite its small venue, the ambiance of this coffee shop is insanely awesome and homey, and definitely... decent coffees :).

Another reason why I come back to UNION beside of their uber-fabulous cakes, it's also for their coffee creations. Their version of "Caramel Macchiato" is just awesome. I love how they managed to give a slightly more generous amount of caramel syrup and sauce, but after you mix it, everything's well balanced.